Lonely Day
by Lebug80
Summary: *UPDATED* 1st ch: Percy's POV. 2nd ch: Oliver's POV. Percy/Oliver. Percy thinks back on the people he misses after the battle at Hogwarts. Slash. Title based on Lonely Day song by System of a Down.
1. Chapter 1

Lonely Day

Summary: A part angst part fluff story centered around Percy. Deals with his relationship with his family and his relationship with Oliver. Yes, this is slash. Don't like it, don't read it. One-shot.

A/N: Please be kind, I still consider myself a newbie writer and no one edited my work except me.

I do not own the characters. I borrow them occasionally without permission. (Story of my life)

Percy was lonely. It was a strange feeling, not the feeling of loneliness that was a familiar feeling in Percy's life, but the feeling of loneliness in a house full of Weasleys, that was a new sensation. It wasn't lack of company that made Percy lonely. Well, lack of certain company, he thought to himself.

He missed the people they had lost in the war. His brother Fred, his brother George, who was still here in body, but left a part of himself back at Hogwarts on that terrible day. He missed the relationship that could have been forged with his brothers. A relationship that he had hoped for when they could both be adults and no longer living under the same roof. He had heard countless stories of his father's brothers, and how they always fought when they were younger, but became the best of friends, relying on each other in adulthood to navigate the twists and turns of life.

He missed his mentor and friend Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore had been a confidant during his seven years at Hogwarts. A man who always made time for students in need. A man who held a sympathetic ear for the young man in a time of uncertainty. Most people had been shocked when the it was revealed that Dumbledore had a special friendship with Grindwald but Percy had not been shocked. He had known about Dumbledore's sexual preference. It had been something they discussed when Percy himself was struggling with similar feelings for a certain male student in his house. Percy was sorry that he was never able to apologize to his mentor for not believing him. He wanted to apologize for being swayed by public opinion. He knew in his heart that Dumbledore would not hold it against him, would chalk it up to the impetuousness of youth, but he still wished he could make amends to the man that had helped him in his growth to adulthood.

Most of all he missed one specific person. He missed the sandy haired, athletic student that had shared a dorm with him for 7 years and a bed with him for 3. Their romantic relationship at Hogwarts had been quiet, nothing shown in public, nothing spoken aloud only comfort shared in the night. They only began to share a bed in their last year at Hogwarts, exploring the new territory with trepidation and care.

Their first two years out of school they had continued being room and bed mates. Percy fondly remembers the two-bedroom apartment they shared in Muggle London. Muggle London was the perfect place to maintain their anonymity and have a certain freedom from the wizarding world. They each had separate day lives, Percy at the Ministry of Magic and Oliver at Puddlemere United. They shared the evenings. Often walking and exploring Muggle London. Or rather, Percy thought with a laugh, Oliver showing a naïve and awestruck Percy all the wonders of Muggle London. Percy remembered the feeling of wonder at seeing all of the things he had read about but never experienced. The British Museum had been his favourite, and they had visited it frequently.

At the end of their second year in Muggle London Oliver was recruited by the resistance and they began to drift apart. Percy remembers those days as being fraught with paperwork and things to do at the office, so he hadn't even noticed that Oliver was away so often. They never spoke or discussed politics at home, but politics entered their lives and thrust a wedge between them. Oliver spent more and more nights away training and Percy was caught up at the office, spending many nights preparing reports for Fudge.

The relationship ended as quietly as it had begun. Oliver sent Percy a note explaining that he would be in Glasgow for training for the next two months and would he please forward him his mail.

Percy had been sad and had spent too many nights working late at the office. He had sent a reply with Oliver's accumulated mail. He remembers sitting at the kitchen table in an empty apartment and wondering at how he could write a letter so calmly ending his relationship. He had written Oliver stating that the lease was up and he had moved Oliver's belongings into storage. He had mailed the letter, Oliver's mail and the key. For two weeks after he had needlessly worried about a reply. None came and Percy had left the apartment for Wizard London without looking back.

Until now. Today he was lonely and wished for that two-bedroom apartment in Muggle London. He wished for a walk through the museum and an ice-cream cone. He had seen Oliver twice since he sent that letter. Once before the battle, he was surveying the Great Hall and there was Oliver doing the same thing. Their eyes met and they shared a smile. Oliver had begun to walk towards him and Percy's stomach had been aflutter with butterflies. Oliver had been about to open his mouth when the battle began and with a smile and a small wave he turned, mounted his broom and was off. Percy watched him briefly and then hurried himself to join the fray.

The second time had been at Fred's funeral. Percy had been pre-occupied with his family and had been unable to relate or speak to anyone else, even when Oliver approached him to give him his condolences Percy had been cold and brief, unable to share his grief.

The funeral had been nine months ago and many of the Weasley children had left home. They lived in different parts of the United Kingdom, but the second Sunday of every month they all came home. It had been mandated by Molly. Too many had been lost in the war that she was not going to allow distance to create any more rifts or loss between her and her family. So every Weasley child and their spouse and children descended on the burrow once a month. This was a bittersweet time for Percy who was still trying to find his way back to the family. He still lived in the same apartment he had moved to after leaving the apartment he had shared with Oliver. It was quiet and close to the ministry. The contrast between his apartment and the burrow jarred him each time he entered either but he was glad for the emotion. He was glad to be once again among the chaos of his family. He had missed them.

He was shocked out of his reverie by a knock on the door. They had all been enjoying a post brunch quiet time in the living room, reading, playing chess or talking quietly. No one else was expected. All of the Weasley's exchanged confused glances except Charlie who bound for the door with excitement.

"Sorry guys," he explained, as he opened the door. "Ì didn't know if he would come or not, so I didn't warn you, but I didn't think you would mind." Charlie opened the door with a flourish and all 10 heads looked with curiosity at the figure standing outside the door.

Oliver Wood smiled at Charlie and the Weasleys as he stood inside the door. He wasn't allowed to stand there long as Charlie pulled him into the room. Many of the Weasley's rose upon seeing who their visitor was. Oliver was a friend to many of the Weasleys and was warmly welcomed with a hug by everybody. Percy was shocked and it took him many more moments to stand and join the others. He extended his hand for a handshake with Oliver. Oliver grinned and thankfully ignoring his handshake pulled Percy close for a hug. Percy was thankful that his face was facing the door and none of his family could see his face as he hugged Oliver. He didn't want to reveal the emotions that were quickly bubbling up inside him. Oliver was then pulled away from him by Harry who wanted to say hello. Percy took a moment to compose himself and then returned to the safety of his chair in the corner. Oliver was finally sat beside George, who although he was not smiling looked the happiest he had in a long time.

Oliver quickly explained why he had dropped by. "I was shopping in Quality Quidditch Supplies for new gear for the season when I saw a tuft of red hair over the shelves and when I investigated there was Charlie. He invited me to join you for brunch. I had my own family brunch to attend but promised I would stop by if I had a chance. I am sorry to come by without calling.."

"Nonsense, " Molly quickly interjected, "You are always welcome here, anytime."

"Yeah," Charlie added, "especially when you can give us the inside scoop on this year's Quidditch season."

Quickly more voices jumped in and the talk quickly descended into Quidditch teams, stats, players and the likelihood of a Quidditch world cup this season. Percy tuned out the conversation and appeared to all eyes to have returned to his book. He held his book in his lap and feigned reading but was actually watching Oliver very closely. He maintained his vigil till he felt other eyes upon him. He looked up to see George watching him as intently as he was watching Oliver. Percy coughed and excused himself. He quickly climbed the steps to his room and closed the door. He didn't think anyone noticed him leaving; everyone had been so caught up in discussing Quidditch.

He was just beginning to catch his breath when he heard a knock on the door. He opened the door and was shocked to see George standing at his door.

"How long Percy?" George asked.

Percy heart stopped and he feigned ignorance to George's question. He straightened up and using what many used to call his head-boy voice he addressed his grief struck brother. "How long what, George?"

George, not one to cower from confrontation, stepped inside Percy's room. He said only one word. "Oliver."

Percy looked down at his brother from his taller and straighter stance. He looked at the black circles that were permanently etched in his face and the mouth that no longer curved into a smile. Percy sighed, saddened by his younger brothers face and unable to be secretive with someone who had lost so much.

"Since our seventh year at Hogwarts. We broke up two years before the battle at Hogwarts." The battle at Hogwarts had become a milestone that people measured time by. Things happened either prior or post the battle. For those who had lost loved one it was a milestone that was used cautiously and with great reverence. Percy hated the hurt he saw cross his brother's face, but was astonished by the small smile that followed.

"Fred knew." He said.

Percy stood dumbfounded. How, what, he was unable to create a coherent sentence in his head, a first for the eloquent red-head who always knew what to say. George continued as if there had been no pause.

"Fred knew something was up between you and Oliver. Although he thought it started much earlier. He asked me one evening during Christmas holidays if I thought Oliver was seeing anyone. I honestly hadn't given it much thought. I was too wrapped up in trying to get my own dates to worry about Oliver's dates. I forgot all about it till next Christmas when he told me that he knew who Oliver was dating. I begged him to tell me. I figured he was dating someone from the Quidditch team and I wanted to know who was off the market. He wouldn't tell me who it was. It was one of the few secrets he kept from me. I thought he was just trying to bug me because I was so obsessed with getting a girl and I didn't like the idea of Oliver dating anyone from the team. But it wasn't me that he was trying to annoy, he was protecting you." George looked up into Percy's eyes and again smiled that small smile.

Percy collapsed onto his bed. He was shocked. He was touched. He was so many emotions he was unsure how to catalogue them and didn't know what to say or do. He wanted to laugh and cry at the same time, but nothing would come out. He felt tears well up in his eyes and he wiped them with his sleeve.

George continued. "We were so mad when you left the family. We vowed never to speak to you again. We wrote limericks about you. Mean ones, derogatory ones, ones that we never shared with anyone but each other, but still he never told me. Even when he was so mad at you he couldn't see straight he still protected you. I've seen you Percy, trying to join the family, but staying on the outskirts. You feel like its your fault, that you let us down, and you did."

Percy caught his breath, but George ploughed on. "I need to tell you the truth, the only way to heal this family is with the truth. We were all so mad at you. We didn't understand what you had done, we didn't understand what you were thinking, how you could do what you did. But we loved you. We missed you. And we protected you, even when you needed protection from yourself."

Percy looked with astonishment at his brother. He hadn't realized how much George had grown in the past nine months. Fred and George had always been his little brothers, trouble makers who needed to be looked after, and scolded. He hadn't realized that they had grown up, and that George had become this insightful and thoughtful man.

Percy took a deep breath and said the one thing he trusted himself to say. "Thank you." They stared at each other for a moment, both thinking of another red-head that would never return to the burrow, a red-head whom they both loved and who loved both of them. A red-head that would never be forgotten.

Finally George broke the silence, "So, I have some love potion chocolate left over from Weasleys Wizard Wheezes do you want to slip some to Oliver later?"

Percy laughed, a single bark that was quickly contained. "Thank you, but no, I think I we need to talk while we are both under our own faculties and not purple, or growing extra limbs."

"We worked out the those kinks, long ago Percy. You might feel a slight tingle on your tongue and maybe sing a couple notes of Love Me Tender. But the effects don't last long. Wait here and I will go fetch them from our room."

As George stepped out of Percy's room he was stopped by a figure in the doorway. Oliver stood just outside the door. He looked like a little kid that had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar, he wanted to enter Percy's room, but he didn't want to disturb the brothers.

"I came to get George, Charlie wanted to play Quidditch on the lawn and we wanted to know if you wanted to referee, we didn't know if you would feel like playing. I heard your voice in here and I came to see and I didn't mean to.." and he trailed off, unable to finish his sentence. He caught Percy's eye and the two of them stared at each other. George caught in the middle glanced from one to the other and made a decision.

"No worries, Oliver, he said, I'll head straight down. I'll take your place on the team." George gave Oliver a thump on the back and a none to gentle shove into Percy's room. As he shut the door behind the pair he gave a thumbs up to an oblivious Percy and again smiled that little grin.

Left alone the boys made no moves towards each other. Percy was still recovering from George's revelations and he wasn't sure he was up for another emotional reunion. But he remembered the warmth of the hug they had shared earlier. It had been overwhelming. Percy hadn't realized how much he missed Oliver's hugs. Oliver was one of those people that hugged with his whole body and you knew that he meant it. It was a hug with purpose. A hug that enveloped you and buoyed you up. No matter how horrid his day had been as Head Boy or at the ministry, he remembered that a hug from Oliver had always made it better. The remembrance of that warmth gave Percy the courage to speak.

"Oliver," he started. He didn't have to continue because Oliver stepped forward and opened his arms. He gladly entered his embrace and they hugged. Percy finally allowed himself a deep breathe and his lungs were filled with the intoxicating smell of Oliver. He relished the smell and allowed himself another. When they finally pulled away from each other, only enough to be able to see each other's face, neither of them ready to let go, Oliver spoke,

"I saw that red hair in Quality Quidditch Supplies and was hoping it was yours. I was so shocked to see Charlie that it took me a second to get over the disappointment that it wasn't you." He began to laugh, and Percy quickly joined in. "I was so glad that he invited me to the burrow, I was hoping I would be able to see you. I was scared to ask him how you were. I was scared to show my eagerness. My mother was so sad to see me leave brunch early, but I couldn't stay away from you. I've wanted to talk to you since the battle."

For once in his life Percy did not want to talk. He was all talked out. For once he didn't care about the consequences he was going to do what Percy wanted to do. Not what was expected of him, not what was right according to public opinion, but what was right for Percy.

"Can we not talk?" He slyly asked Oliver. Oliver was confused until he continued. "I have not had a good nights sleep since that apartment we shared on Yardley street. Could we just go to bed? Nothing needs to happen except that we share the bed, please?"

Oliver looked incredulously at Percy and laughed, "Whose fault is that," he teased, "you packed all my stuff and sent me a key!"

Percy was glad that Oliver understood, he had missed his time with Oliver, it was the only time he could completely relax. They kicked off their shoes and pants and slipped into bed. Oliver enveloped Percy in his arms.

"What will we tell your family?" He whispered to Percy.

"Who cares." Percy said with a grin as he snuggled closer to the Quidditch player.

Oliver thought he would never stop grinning ever again.

A/N: I know this probably doesn't follow canon exactly, but oh well, call it poetic license. Also I am not from England so I have no idea if there is a Yardley street in London, but I used the most British sounding name I could think of.

If you enjoyed this fic, please let me know!


	2. Chapter 2

These characters don't belong to me.

NOTEL I completed this story late at night and only did one glance over to be sure it was okay. I would love suggestions to improve or to have people point out gross errors I have made. I realize I should have had it beta read, but... oh well,

Note about the story: There is a large gap between chapters, so I'm sorry if they seem a little disjointed. This second chapter is more angst then I meant it to be, but I like it so I am posting it. Please review and let me know what you think.

The first thing Oliver noticed was the late afternoon sun on his face. It was both warm and uninviting. It shone across his left eye and down his nose. He could see it through his eyelid. The second thing he noticed was that he was not alone. His arm was curled around another body. He woke himself up slightly and tried to decipher who the person might be through contact with his left arm. His hand was on the person's back. The body felt soft and lithe, his reach easily crossed the person without stretching. As he gained consciousness his brain began to process his surroundings and he remembered that the he never got sun on his face in his bedroom. The bed was too far from the window to reach. This thought brought him to full consciousness, as he rarely allowed himself to wake up so disorientated in a stranger's bed. He was much more careful after that incident in Cardiff with the fan and the handcuffs. He always left before morning, much easier to not get in trouble and not get attached. He flicked his eyes open, a precaution to both allow for his pupils to dialate and to gather clues before he committed to being awake.

Red. Red was the first thing he saw. Unwilling to leap to conclusions he opened his eyes to slits and gathered more evidence. He saw the side of a face covered in freckles. The front of the face was pretty buried in the pillows but he recognized the angle of the nose and the multitude of freckles. Percy, he was in bed with Percy. The fog was lifting and he recalled showing up at the Weasley's door. He remembers restraining himself to just hugging Percy, even though he wanted to do so much more. He remembers grasping at the chance to run upstairs and knock on Percy's door. He remembers George pushing him into the room. He remembers Percy's shy smile, and he remembers hugging Percy tightly. He remembers taking a big breathe, a breath he hadn't been able to take for many years. He hadn't realized how much he needed that breath. How empty his lungs had been. He realizes that his stupor may be a side effect of his senses being overwhelmed. It had been too long since he was in this position and it haunted his dreams and waking moments. No wonder he was so disorientated, this was a feeling he had long ago come to believe he had lost.

His stirrings caused Percy to stir, for Percy's eyes to flutter open. Without his glasses it was hard for Percy to make out exact shapes but Oliver knew from experience that he recognized smells and the feel of the arm around him. Percy looked up at the blurry face, smiled and blushed. Oliver chuckled and leaned over Percy to retrieve his glasses. The movement was old habit and it felt both strange and comfortable. It also gave Percy a moment to gather his thoughts, and Oliver knew that the red-head would appreciate it. Oliver moved back to his side of the bed, opened the glasses and placed them on Percy's face. Percy blinked owlishly. It always took a moment to transition from blurry to clear sight.

"Hi" Oliver ventured, when he saw that Percy had recovered his sight.

"Hi" Percy returned.

Neither boy knew where to begin. What do you say to your lover whom you haven't spoken to in more than 2 years? How do you begin?

"Did you know that Fred knew?" asked Percy. The question was so far from what Oliver had expected Percy to say that he chuckled, loudly.

"Yeah, I did actually. He told me the day of the battle. The twins were the first people that I met when I landed at Hogwarts. George was called away by Charlie to look to something and Fred turned to me and told me that you missed me. I feigned innocence and he allowed me to bluster for a couple of moments before he got to the heart of the matter and told me that he had known since our seventh year. You know that is why your brother's joke shop did so well. They are so good at reading people. That is how they always pull the best pranks and get in the least amount of trouble. I say least because you can't avoid the trouble all together. There has to be some consequences. " Oliver smiled at Percy's baffled expression, for a smart guy Percy did not read people well. "Anyways," he continued eager to finish his story, "that is how I knew where to find you that day. Fred told me where you were."

'I figured it was too coincidental that you should just happen across me when you were doing your surveillance."

"Yeah, I was looking for you. I was eager to speak with you. There was so much left unsaid..." Oliver trailed off, unsure how to finish that sentence. He always knew what to say and do but this situation was so tenuous that he wasn't sure what to say. He didn't want to break the moment.

"What did you want to say? Will you tell me now?" Percy had mended a lot of bridges in the past year. He knew from experience that there were words that had to be said out loud. That by putting voice to the past it would be allowed to exist in the past and all parties could heal.

Oliver looked shocked. He knew that Percy wasn't a coward but he also knew that Percy didn't discuss feelings easily. Percy was analytical. He was a problem-solver. When they had fought before it had always been a tug of war between Percy's analytical nature and Oliver's more emotional response.

It was Oliver's turn to blink. Neither boy had moved yet the space between them seemed to become supercharged with things unsaid. Oliver swallowed audibly. Then, he got mad. Obtuse Percy, as always unable to read the situation and goading Oliver into a fight. Didn't he realize how much Oliver was enjoying the sunshine and the warmth of holding Percy so close? Oliver wrenched his arm away and fell out of the bed. He quickly rolled to his feet and faced the bed. Percy sat up and faced the enraged Oliver. Oliver clenched and unclenched his fists. He knew the anger was simply reactive but he wasn't able to calm down. All he wanted to do was crawl back under the covers but he wasn't sure how to get back there.

"Perce," he started incredulously, "You broke up a 3 year relationship by post! You packed away my stuff and filed me away in your neatly ordered drawers as an interesting experiment that had come to an end. When I saw you on the battle field I was pumped with adrenaline and the knowledge from Fred, I had no idea what I wanted to say, except that I knew I had to say something. I saw your face and you looked so content, despite standing in the middle of a soon-to-be battlefield. I could see the peace on your face; I could see that you had taken steps to making it right between yourself and your family. I was so happy for you. Then the battle started and I had to leave, but I was filled with adrenaline and positivity. I had seen you and I figured we could talk, provided we both survived the battle, and it made me fight stronger and better than I had in a long time." His voice grew quiet. "Then Fred, " he paused and collected himself. "You became cold again. I lost you again and it hurt more than the first time because this time I saw you pull away from me. I looked you in the eye as you didn't acknowledge my presence. As if I was just another member of the public come to pay my respects to Fred. That sounds selfish but that day I mourned not just the death of your brother but also the death of our potential. I had been filled with such hope only a couple of days earlier and to have it dashed so easily was frightening. I was inconsolable; it's why I didn't seek you out. Then I saw Charlie at the store and my heart jumped. He gave me a fright, and even though I knew I would get hurt again I couldn't stay away from you. Against my better judgement I showed up here and put my arms around you and allowed you to pull me to you. I allowed you to gloss over all the emotional conflict, laughed with you and pushed down the emotions bubbling to the surface.  
When I overheard your conversation with Fred I grew hopeful again and was once again pulled into the world of Percy, obeying Percy's rules of honour and decorum. Don't talk about your feelings and don't tell anyone anything. Oliver the emotional one and Percy the one with all the power." He was trembling when he finished talking and had growled out the last few words. The words seemed to have poured out of him and he knew that what he was saying was hurting Percy but they seemed to be an unstoppable force. Ho continued to stare at Percy's face, unwilling to break eye contact.

It was Percy's turn to respond and Oliver could see that he was carefully choosing his words, however when he spoke it was not what Oliver expected to hear.

"I have felt a deep sense of loneliness ever since the last night we shared at that apartment on Yardley street. Our last night was just before your European tour with Puddlemere. We knew you were going to be away for a minimum of two months, so I left work at 7pm, which was scandalous for me those days when I used to never leave before 10. You had dinner ready. Spaghetti and meatballs, your speciality, afterwards we walked around the neighbourhood and ate ice-cream. I remember it was a warm night and the streets were full of people. You held my hand and I felt not lost. I felt grounded in something, in someone. We talked about nothing and everything. It was our last night. In the morning you slipped away while I was sleeping. Then your tour kept getting extended and I worked longer hours until six months had passed and we barely even exchanged owls anymore. " Oliver opened his mouth to respond, but Percy held up his hands and continued. "I'm not laying blame Olli, I'm just trying to express what happened from my view point. We both know that it is hard for me to share, but it's important and you are worth it." Percy smiled. "It was hard for me to see your stuff every night when I came home. The ministry was changing and I was beginning to lose confidence in the people there. I had always taken a sense of pride in my work and there had been a sense of community, of camaraderie in working towards the good of all the wizarding world. Then everything changed. I became a pawn in their games and I didn't know how to reconcile the life we were leading in Muggle London with the life I was leading at the Ministry. So, I chose one life and dedicated myself to it. I chose badly. I chose the Ministry over you, over my family, over all of my principles. I was blinded by my own ambition and sense of self-worth. It was then that I started to feel lonely. Even in a room full of people, I was lonely. Sitting at my desk amid the hustle and bustle of the ministry, which I had loved before, I was lonely. I didn't know how to get back. I didn't know how to find myself again, let alone find my family, or you." Percy was silent for several moments. When he spoke again he had a smile across his face. "Then, one day, I received a letter from my mum. It was a holiday letter, one of those form letters you write to all of your family and friends to let them know what happened during the year. I hadn't received one the previous year. I guess the wound had been too fresh for my family. But last year, just before the battle at Hogwarts, I got one. I think mum sent it by accident. I know I opened it by accident. It had been on a pile of correspondence that I had been neglecting for a couple of days. I tore it open and began to read. Only realizing what it was once I was a quarter of the way through. I remember being surprised mum had even sent it. I mean everyone I knew was involved in these clandestine operations for the war and here was mum sending out Christmas letters. But, it was something she did every year and even Voldemort's rise to power wasn't going to stop my mum. As always at the end of the letter she listed all the family's accomplishments and again I was surprised to see my name in the letter. It seems that they were keeping tabs on me, even though I wasn't talking to them, or them to me, they knew that I was still at the ministry and what department I was working in. It wasn't much, but it was a glimmer of the companionship that I had been missing. I hadn't realized how much I missed it till I saw that letter, until I read that name. It took me another two weeks to ring up my mother. But I did, and slowly I began to reintegrate with my family. Slowly I began to trust them and they to trust me. It was this that allowed me to be there during the battle at Hogwarts. It was that confidence that you saw when we shared that brief moment. I got to fight alongside my family. I got to be a part of them, joking with them. The joke that got Fred killed." Percy paused again then continued in a softer tone. "I would never say this to George or any part of the family but for a split second I was so proud of the joke I had made. It was my first glimmer of real amity between us again. And it cost Fred his life. My need to belong, my need to shine for that moment, cost my family a son, a brother, a twin. For days after I was numb. Again my ambition had come at a high price. I barely remember the funeral or the days following it. I worked on auto-pilot unable to face anyone. My mother sent Charlie to fetch me to Sunday dinner and I came and I ate, and I participated. When the family started to smile again I smiled too. I walked through the motions of being part of the family again. I thought I was doing pretty well until earlier today when you walked in. I couldn't pretend around you. I never could pretend around you." Percy's smile grew wider. "My redemption and my curse; my inability to hide from you. I think that is what finally allowed George to call me out. To confront me on my inability to be a real part of the family. He exploited the chink in my armour. You" Percy reached out and motioned for Oliver to come back to the bed. Oliver easily relented and Percy lifted up the covers to allow Oliver to slide under them once more. Oliver could see that Percy was tired again. Could see the drain on his face from relating that story. He knew they weren't finished. He knew that there was more to tell. More conflict to resolve, but for now he was content. For now Percy was back in his arms. He had made his way back into Percy's bed. He drew his thumb over the back of Percy's hand and spoke quietly. "Perce," he said, forcing the other man to make eye contact again, "will you promise me one thing?"

"Sure, " Percy agreed readily.

"Will you promise never to break up with me via post again?" Oliver grinned at the mock outrage in Percy's eyes.

"Bu, I... Didn't you understand what I just said? I don't think I want to break up with you ever again." Percy blustered.

"Good" Oliver said and drew Percy to him and kissed him soundly and deeply.


End file.
